One Last Chance
by Saddened Soul
Summary: The Prince returns to Babylon with Kaileena, but the city has been beseiged by an unknown force. With a dark power at the center of it all, the Prince and his group of companions must discover the truth and restore time before it shatters completely.
1. A Rusty Homecoming

(Before I start, for those of you who have not beaten Warrior Within this will contain spoilers; BIG spoilers of the end, well, I should say the alternate ending. Besides that, this is my version of the next Prince of Persia game, whatever it may be.

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Prince of Persia.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter One

The sun was beginning to set as the moon could be seen in full reflection over the ocean water. The Prince thought it was beautiful, and the beauty of it was a breath of fresh air. Years of fear and anger stored within him exfoliated, and he was glad. The Dahaka was dead, and he had escaped death for, what he hoped, was the last time.

"We're almost there, Babylon is so very close. I no longer I have to run, and can build a new life for myself, a life free from the violence and hatred of war and death," he thought, feeling the intricate blade he held at his side, raising it up and admiring its beauty.

"This very blade struck the Dahaka down, it freed me of any confines I had," the Prince murmured, studying the strange metal leaves attached around the metal blade, whose light blue tint glistened with the water.

"So, from what you explained, we should be there soon?"

The Prince slightly nudged his head in the direction of the voice as Kaileena approached him, her long brown hair swaying in the sudden wind.

He nodded. "Yes, very soon." Kaileena leaned over the railing, glancing around slightly.

"So tell me," she began, "about your country of Persia." The Prince sighed. "From my first day of realizing my home and my place there, I've always thought it was magnificent. The cities are grand and many, and on days such as this, the great structures and buildings glisten gold in the sunlight, almost as if they-

The Prince stopped abruptly, his eyes widening as he noticed pillars of smoke raising in the distance. The water's serene color was soon overcame by an extreme red light and haze as they approached the source of what seemed to be a massive fire.

His mouth grew parched as a great sense of fear overcame him. He could see it; the great shores of his home were caught in an inferno, fires raging throughout.

"W- What have I done!" the Prince exclaimed as their vessel began to increase in speed as the waves grew in intensity and power.

Kaileena noticed this as well, hiding her surprise as the Prince began to un- strap the sails while the wind became more and more violent. "We must hurry; now that the wind is with us!" the Prince yelled, untying the last strap and running over to the front of the ship.

Now that they were at an accurate distance away, the Prince could study the situation. There was a war, or at least what seemed to be. Persian soldiers could be seen battling with what seemed to be Indian soldiers, which could only mean there was an attack by the Majaraha on Persia.

The Prince gritted his teeth as the bay came into full view. "Why? I averted our army's attack on the palace, and that was more than a year ago. Could my father have attacked again, or am I the one to blame? Could my interferences in the timeline have caused this?"

"This has a connection with an event in the past," Kaileena stated. The Prince faced her. "What do you mean? What could I have done!"

The woman sighed. "I cannot be sure Prince; the strengths I held at the Isle of Time are weak, and the situation is very strange."

The Prince was about to respond when he heard the soaring of arrows. Whoever truly was attacking Babylon had noticed their ship, and from what the Prince assumed, thought they were enemies.

Instinct took over as he pushed Kaileena down, avoiding the shower of arrows as two hooked ropes impaled the ship, allowing a modest sum of soldiers to invade.

The attackers rushed the two, not even bothering to demand an identification of some sort. The Prince responded angrily, a fury which he had never experienced before enveloped him, and he struck his first opponent down with one slash. He vaulted over the next soldier, impaling him and then in a flash of gore, severed his head. He then quickly speared the third soldier through the abdomen as he attempted an attack on the Prince.

The final two soldiers, shocked, ran off the boat and into the city.

The Prince sheathed his weapon away and climbed off of the ship as did Kaileena.

"Father, I'm coming."

(I'm sorry if this first chapter seemed short, but I'm pretty sure they'll get longer. Please R&R!)


	2. A Forlorn Criminal

(To tell you the truth, I felt the first chapter wasn't that, should I say, good for an introductory chapter, and I'll try to make up for it here. Aside from that, I'll TRY to update every week or sooner, but I cannot guarantee anything regarding that. Oh well, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Oh, and Rin, the game isn't very short, and if you liked the first one it's definitely worth your time, in my opinion.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Two

Countless thoughts swarmed in and out of the Prince's head; each questioned what action he had ever done, what he could have done differently.

He had not visited his home in over six years, and he was certainly afraid; more afraid though, of the safety of his father and brother.

An arguably two hours had passed since the Prince and Kaileena had arrived at the city, and most of whatever battle had occurred was already done. Corpses littered the streets, and many once beautiful gardens and buildings had been torn apart.

The Prince fought back tears as he ran through the main street which would eventually lead to the royal palace; the place which had been his home since he was a child, and yet he now felt regret, whether it was of lost time he did not know.

He stopped abruptly near the crossroads before the palace, studying his surroundings. Kaileena felt the need for a rest, but she had trouble feeling what the Prince was feeling. Her only home had been the Isle of Time, and that was truly the only place she had resided her entire life up until that point.

"You were meant to remain there; to die there, Kaileena." The voice had echoed within her mind for that one instant, seeming to come from all directions.

"Did you hear that?" she asked slowly, attempting to keep her voice low and hidden. "Hear what?" the Prince responded, edging his hand towards the hilt of his sword.

Kaileena cleared her throat quietly before answering, "That voice; a child was speaking."

The Prince turned to face her, gradually lowering his hand from his blade. "What are you talking about? There is no child around here; I'm sure no one survived."

The Prince's voice acquired a quiet, solemn tone when he finished his sentence. "Why wasn't I here when this happened?" he muttered, closing his eyes and turning back to the direction of the palace.

"There's no point in thinking about something we have no idea of. We must hurry to my father's palace."

He then heard the sound of distorted air; the sound of arrows flying towards their target.

The Prince swerved around in the direction of the projectile just before it struck his right arm. He let out a small whimper of pain as a small unit of enemy soldiers surrounded them.

"Damn, they were waiting for us," he thought as three archers prepared their bows.

"No, don't kill them yet." That voice, the Prince had heard it numerous times before; it was the voice of his father's most elite soldier, the man who, since the last time the Prince had seen him, was the leader of his father's most skilled bodyguards.

"Hesam! Please… Tell me what has happened!" the Prince asked urgently, still grasping the arrow submerged in his arm.

Hesam chuckled. He wore a dark blue uniform, with buckles fastened around each of his arms, as well as leather boots with a sword strapped to his side. His somewhat long hair flowed down his neck, and his gentle green eyes settled upon the Prince.

From what the Prince observed, Hesam had aged in the long seven years. His hair held a faded gray, splattered around black, and slight wrinkles could be seen dotted around his face.

"Ah, my Prince, you have grown so much. You are a true adult!"

The Prince gritted his teeth. "Answer my question Hesam! I am in no mood for games; what has happened here!"

The older man smirked and glanced to his soldiers. "Yes my Prince, that is a very crucial matter indeed. The reason that you kneel before me this day, is because you are a criminal; a criminal owned by your own country.

"A criminal, for what reason have I been named as such!"

Anger and fury exploded within the Prince as Hesam sighed. "You have been charged with treason, my Prince, and our great king has condemned you to death."

"My father?" he replied, his breathing enhancing.

"Unfortunately, this order was not of your father's, but of one who is much superior to even yourself."

"Who, then, is that?"

"I am sorry my Prince, but you and your lady friend will not survive long enough to find the answer to that question, unless you cooperate willingly."

"Cooperate, for what?" the Prince asked eagerly, only for Hesam to laugh. "If you come to the palace with me, all will be explained."

The Prince stood up, jerking the arrow from his arm. "Tell me now Hesam, or I won't hesitate to force the answer from you."

The man chuckled once more, raising his hand. "No, and so you leave me no other option, capture him alive."

"You just stated you would kill us, correct?" Kaileena stammered.

Hesam smiled. "Perhaps my dear, I changed my mind."

Just as he finished the sentence, the soldiers attacked, and the Prince quickly back- flipped out of the way. Kailleena effortlessly disabled her attacker and stripped him of his sword as the Prince slashed one soldier down and impaled the next one, stealing his weapon and jamming it into the third soldier's shoulder.

Hesam watched the battle, studying the Prince's moves and skills, noticing he had created his own style of fighting. The young woman was no less spectacular in wielding a sword, and the two quickly dismantled the troupe of attackers

Hesam began to clap as the last soldier fell; the Prince sheathed his blood- stained blade and stared at Hesam with an expression of true hatred.

"Very impressive my Prince," he began, "but did you believe it would be so, shall I say, simple?"

"What do you-," the Prince started, but Kaillena was quickly knocked unconscious by ano0ther soldier.

"Kaileena!" he exclaimed, but was kicked in the abdomen by a second soldier, forcing him to his knees.

"My Prince, surely you did not think your absence would come with no consequence?"

"What… is that supposed to mean… Hesam?"

The man merely shook his head, and the soldier smashed the Prince with his fist, knocking him out.


	3. Truth Revealed

One Last Chance:

Chapter Three

The Prince opened his eyes slowly, his head throbbing viciously. He tried to focus his eyes, rubbing them with his fingers.

"I see you've awoken."

The Prince stole a quick glance at Hesam before sighing and looking over his surroundings. They were riding in a somewhat large wagon, being pulled by a small unit of soldiers.

"Strange, isn't it? In such speed a great city was torn into shambles; a barren wasteland with the life draining away."

The Prince scowled. "How could you betray us? My father never did anything against you; why this malice?"

Hesam grinned. "I suppose I supported this assault because I never really did care that much for your father. He was arrogant and foolhardy; our new king should surely bring our country to a new age of prosperity."

The Prince gritted his teeth. "Destroying and killing is what you call bringing in a new age of prosperity; madness!"

Hesam merely smiled as the small caravan approached the palace. Once they arrived, the Prince and Kaileena were escorted off and into the great building.

The Prince could not bear to study any of the interior. The shame within him was much too great to bear. He knew he was the one responsible; in every way he knew it was his fault.

Hesam lead the four soldiers and their captives up to the fifth floor, which housed the throne room. They continued; magnificent carpentry and furniture decorated the great hall. Warm memories returned to the Prince; memories of being shown every part of the palace. He had been told that he would one day rule all of Persia, but that thought was a distant one as they arrived at the throne room.

Kaileena was in awe of the building. Never once in all of her life had she experienced anything similar to it. In the back of her mind though, she wished for the palace to have had life, not an empty castle of sadness. It reminded her of her confinement; the likes of which she hoped never to live through again.

Hesam cleared his throat and knocked on the large wooden doors, awaiting a response. The doors nudged and opened, revealing a vast chamber.

Intricately designed concrete pillars lined the room, holding a circular stone slab high up. The carpet lead up to the throne; a golden chair shaped like a lion with red cushioned seating.

The figure seated wore a black cloak and hood, which draped around him. Two guards stood at opposite sides beside him.

"Hesam, well done. The last in the royal lineage has come to face judgment."

The Prince vaguely recognized the voice. It was familiar, yet far off. It was empty though, as if the person was crying out from a deep abyss; emotionless and cold.

"What have you done with my father; my brothers!" the Prince stammered, his voice shaky. The figure proceeded to remove his hood. "Your family has been disposed of. They were unfit to rule Persia, as are you."

Kaileena and the Prince gasped in surprise at the face of the person. "Impossible… How can this be!"

The person was the Prince, but his skin was pale, however, the most astonishing feature was his eyes; they were pure white.

He smiled. "There were two other princes involved with you. You are the present, the future was the Sand Wraith, and the past was the previous. Both of these were consumed by the Dahaka, you allowed them to be."

"What do you mean?" The Prince asked, his voice becoming more and more fragile. "The Dahaka has no past or present. It is one entity, throughout all of time. Thus, it consumed both the Wraith and the past prince. It was perfect, but you destroyed the Dahaka, and you freed them. However, the Wraith and the past Prince were different entities, yet the same person. They had the knowledge of the future and past. You see, normally only one prince could be taken, but there was the Sand Wraith. It was a malfunction in time, and I am the offspring of that error."

"What!" the Prince exclaimed. "I am both the Wraith and the past prince. You sold me to the Dahaka, sold me to a darkness that would drive a man insane. Fortunately, you freed me, and I have come to take what you stole."

"No!" the Prince shouted as he quickly knocked the guard holding him aside and stealing his sword. He then dashed at the abomination, preparing to slash at him vertically. The abomination merely unsheathed his own sword and blocked the attack.

He chuckled before stating, "You cannot kill me, nor I you, but I do not wish for you to die. However, if you may, please call me Kamal."

He then kicked the Prince to the floor and sheathed his weapon. "Lock both him and his lady friend in the dungeons until I come across a fitting judgment."

The soldiers nodded and took the two from the room, leaving only Hesam and Kamal, along with the two guards.

"To think, time could be damaged," Hesam thought aloud. Kamal smiled. "Perhaps, but we must hurry if we are to find the sword. We have the first piece; we now need only the other."

(Hello, my readers. Just to confirm it, Farah will be in the story, and will probably appear in the next chapter or so.) Thanks for reading, and remember to review!)


	4. A Plan to Escape

(One of the main reasons why I'm putting Farah in the story is because she appeared in the alternate ending; this is of course branching off from it. She wasn't completely my favorite character either, so I have mixed results. Well, I'll figure it out.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Four

"There must be some way out of here," Kaileena stated, feeling over the brick walls of the cell.

The Prince quietly sat in the corner of the cell, beside the wooden plank of a bed. "Aren't you going to help me?" Kaileena asked, glancing in his direction.

The Prince stared at her for a moment, before shaking his head. "I… can't keep going like this. It wouldn't make a difference if we escaped, or just rotted here. I've tried numerous times to escape death, but it seems every time I do, it comes back. The old man was right, and I was arrogant,; I cannot change my fate."

Kaileena thought about the statement, but quickly shook her head. "I know it is difficult Prince, but are you going to allow what you've done up to this point to be for naught? You proved me, the Empress of Time, wrong about averting fate; can you not prove yourself wrong?"

Kaileena let the statement hang in the air as the Prince looked up her. "I can't; since the time I first held the Dagger of Time I was doomed. It's impossible."

She sighed and leaned against the wall opposite him, trying to think. The cell was silent for the next few minutes, before a hooded figure stopped before the cubicle.

"It really is you! To think you'd be in your own prison!" the man exclaimed while searching around in his cloak. He then took out a set of keys; quickly choosing one, he slid it through the small lock and turned it.

With a small creak, he pulled the rusted metal open and walked in.

Kaileena backed away, but the man shook his head and removed his hood. His face was boyish in appearance; bright green eyes stared into hair. His light brown hair was tied back in a ponytail.

He smiled slightly as he scanned the room. "I didn't think it was you, but you're finally back.

The Prince recognized the voice immediately; it belonged to his once childhood friend, Massoud. He quickly stood up and turned to the man. "Massoud!"

The man nodded. "It's nice to see you again, but we can go through our introductions and all of that later on; we have to go."

The Prince sighed. "Hold on, we need to free the other prisoners while we have the chance!"

Massoud shook his head. "It's too large a risk; soldiers will be upon us in minutes."

The Prince reluctantly nodded before exiting the cell. Massoud quickly and quietly closed the cell, locking it.

As they were about to continue, though, one prisoner spoke. "Wait! Please, could you hand those keys to me?"

Massoud glanced in the direction the voice spoke and gritted his teeth. "Oh, fine; here." He threw the keys to the cell and a slender hand caught them; unlocking the cell in haste.

The Prince felt the voice was familiar, but it was difficult to tell who it belonged to. The question was answered, though, when the person walked out.

It was a female, with a somewhat dark skin tone. She had short black with one small bang falling out before her eyes. She was wearing the normal prison garment the Prince had seen so rarely before.

"Farah!" he suddenly blurted out, catching her attention. "H- How did you know my name!" she suddenly replied. The Prince fell quiet. "Of course; since I stopped Kaileena from creating the Sands, I never unleashed them, so I never met her," he thought before shaking his head. "Never mind it," he stated.

Massoud and Kaileena glanced at him, but he just glared back, confirming he would explain later.

"Thank you, but what exactly did you have planned?" Farah asked, directing the question to Massoud. He snorted. "My plan didn't involve you, so you can go and get killed for all I care," he replied. Farah scowled. "How dare you! I was once an Indian princess before my father's empire was destroyed by the scoundrels of this country!"

Massoud was about to respond, but the Prince placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's all right; what's one more person?"

Massoud sighed. "Fine, but we must hurry." He then hurriedly trotted down the hallway, avoiding a few obstructions and spider webs.

Grasping and pulling a torch from its place, he signaled tem to come over. "What did you have planned?" the Prince asked, glancing around the hallway and corridor. Massoud walked over to the end of the hallway and crouched down. Dust flew up when he touched the brick wall. "I found a hidden pathway to the docks from this hallway."

He knocked on the wall twice before standing up. The wall suddenly began to shift towards them, revealing an opening on the side of the erupted wall.

Massoud nodded and slid into the opening, followed by Kaileena, Farah, and finally the Prince.

(So here we are, the fourth chapter done. I can't give a number now, and besides, I doubt it would be appropriate, right?)


	5. The Beginning

(I'd be happy to, Rin. Basically, the Prince pushes Kaileena into the present, but then the Dahaka comes after her and the Prince tries to stop him using his new Water Sword. He successfully kills the Dahaka, and then he and Kaileena build a ship to leave the island. They seem to have sex, but I'm erasing that from ever happening in my story because it made me feel uncomfortable. Anyway, as that is happening, we see Babylon on fire. The camera goes within the city and shows a guy killing this other guy, but then goes to a crown falling off of a series of steps. A cloaked figure with a gray color scheme walks up to it and picks it up, by the way, his armor is almost exactly the same to the Prince. Anyway, the camera goes up to his face, but it's all black, except for two red eyes. He then says, "All that is yours is rightfully mine, and mine it will be!" The screen then quickly shows what seems to be Farah on a cross, but it shows for about two seconds and then zooms out, with the Old Man saying that you cannot change your fate.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Five

The passage became narrow, forcing the group to begin crawling. It lasted at least ten minutes, but the minutes seemed like an eternity to the Prince. His mind was attempting to sort through as much information as he could. One thought crossed his mind repeatedly though, and that was something Kamal had stated. He could not kill the Prince, but the Prince could neither kill Kamal, and that bothered him deeply.

"Hold on," Massoud stated as he began to push on a small boulder, putting pressure on it in an attempt to free them all from the rocky pathway.

With one last thrust it fell out and he began to slowly climb out. He stood up and studied the room as the others exited the pathway.

"Massoud, do you mind explaining to me what your plan is?" the Prince asked as he turned to his friend.

Massoud shrugged. "I'm still formulating one; did you expect me to think you alive? I had heard of our prince returning, and then of our army attacking a few of our neighboring countries. Before I knew what was happening, Persia was locked in a war with many other countries, but it was a jumbled mess. It morphed into senseless fighting, and as you know Babylon was seized."

"I need to know about my father; did he ever command an attack on India?"

Massoud nodded. "Oh yes, a few years after you disappeared he rummaged through the country, partially because his attack had been thwarted just months before you ran off."

The Prince glanced at the floor. "Did he by chance, bring back an hourglass of sorts back with him?"

"An hourglass; no, I do not think so though." The Prince crossed his arms. "You said his attack on India was thwarted; what happened?"

"One of your brothers passed away from a rare disease, and your father donated so much to help him."

"Excuse me, but how are we leaving?" Farah suddenly asked, catching Massoud's attention. He snorted. "Would you wait a moment! My friend here is in a strange situation and I am informing him of some details he should be aware of. Besides, you go and figure out your own way!"

Farah scowled. "I would just like to know how we're getting out of this godforsaken place!"

Massoud gritted his teeth. "Godforsaken! Persia was once a great and powerful country!"

"And so was my father's empire, but the foolishness of your king is what brought you here!"

Before Massoud could snap back, the Prince placed his hand on his shoulder. "Let it be, Massoud. You said this passage would lead to the docks, correct? Let us concentrate on getting there first."

Massoud sighed. "All right then, but we must make haste; the guards most likely know our situation."

He then hurriedly walked through the damp cavern towards an almost hidden corridor.

"The palace was built at the edge of the land so it could house its own port. This passage should lead us there, but like I said, we have to move quickly."

There was no sound or speech within the passage for the rest of the walk. Only the echo of footsteps bounced off of the ceiling and walls, and small obstructions began to appear in the passage.

"So, Massoud, how did you find us?" Kaileena asked as they turned a corner. He shrugged. "It was mostly by chance. I had snuck into the palace by a secret entrance I discovered when I was a child. I knocked one of the guards unconscious and slid into the temporary dungeon where criminals were held until their verdict. Sure enough, I found you guys there."

"So you were looking for the Prince?" He nodded. "Yes, after I had heard he had returned, but that was a few days ago when Babylon was attacked."

He stopped and turned to her. "Of course, I did not expect to run into someone like you," he remarked casually."

She merely smiled slightly before they began to continue.

Kamal slid his hand over the railing of the ship, smiling slightly. "It is quite an extraordinary ship, Hesam. I am impressed by your willingness."

The man nodded before joining his master. "I only wish I could do more for you, Sire." Kamal turned to him. "You have done enough, but we must depart soon. The Sands of Time have locked away in the past; the Empress will hold the answer, but we shall deal with that later on. For now, we must concentrate on the second-"

Kamal stopped abruptly, his eyes roaming their surroundings before landing a young girl. "Is there something the matter?" Hesam asked, apparently not noticing the girl.

"Who… are you?" Kamal asked silently as the girl approached him. She had long black hair falling over her shoulders, and was wearing a violet garment which fell up to her ankles. She also wore plain beige sandals and a silver bracelet on her right wrist. However, her eyes were a deep cerulean color, staring straight into Kamal's empty ones.

"I am the soul of the forgotten past and future, the time you were born of," she stated before giggling somewhat and suddenly disappearing.

"Sire?" Hesam asked once more as a soldier ran up on deck. "Captives have escaped the temporary dungeons, and we have discovered passage which should lead to the docks."

Hesam turned to him. "Alright then, assemble a unit and halt their movements. Should it be needed, notify me immediately."

The soldier nodded and ran off as Hesam slowly followed, stealing a suspicious glare at his master.

"Ah, finally; we made it!" Massoud exclaimed as the four walked out on the large brick platform which lay beside two ships.

A large concrete canopy which connected to the palace hovered above and created a small port.

"We have to move quickly if we are to seize a ship and escape," Massoud explained as he walked over to the first ship.

However, the true entrance opened and a small group of soldiers ran out.

The Prince gritted his teeth and turned to Hesam. "Get the ship ready; I'll handle this!" he stated as he tackled a soldier down and jerked his sword from his hand.

He then jammed the sword into the soldier's stomach and then removed it, blocking an attack from the next opponent and severing his body in half.

A few soldiers leapt onto the ship as Massoud and the others climbed up on it. He scowled and took out his dagger before impaling one of the soldiers and knocking down another.

The Prince quickly dismantled the other before rushing to the gate handle and began to turn it. The massive metal gate began to lift, allowing exit from the cavern.

Massoud kicked the last soldier off the ship and began to ready it, turning the switch to turn the oars.

"Untie the sails!" he yelled the ship began to move forward. Farah and Kaileena ran over to the sails and began to undo the knots as the Prince jumped up and climbed onboard.

The ship slid out of the port and into the open, passing another, larger ship.

The Prince glared at the figure standing on the ship as it began to set sail.

(Is the chapter longer? I hope so, but school's back, so I won't be able to update every other day, but I'll try on the weekends.)


	6. Saeedeh, the Girl from Nowhere

(Whoa… I'm getting better results for this story than I thought. Perhaps it's because there aren't that many PoP fics, but that's okay. )

Rin, I'm not sure if he did do her, but it seriously looked that way.

Lady Discord, I don't think Kaileena was having visions about Babylon, but like I said, I think they did 'it'.

One Last Chance:

Chapter Six

Kamal watched the waves rise and fall as Hesam approached him. "Sire, we are preparing to leave, but unfortunately, it seems that our prince has escaped."

Kamal turned to him. "It is not unfortunate in the slightest bit, Hesam. They cannot interfere at this point, but of course, they have the Empress, and my parallel self has indeed knowledge of the situation, but so do I. They have only the knowledge of Massoud to work with, and that is very crude."

He began to walk away before Hesam replied, "However, he stole the map, I'm sure of it!"

Kamal sighed as he stopped before the door. "Do not worry so much Hesam, just relax. We can allow a minor loss such as that, can we not?"

He then proceeded under deck, leaving Hesam to ponder a little.

Farah bit her lip as she approached Massoud on the deck. "Do you even know where we are going?"

He glared at her for a moment before turning back to the map he was studying. "Stop bothering me so much; I am trying to figure out whatever they got from this map."

"Who are you talking of?" she asked as the Prince walked up to them. "You need not concern yourself with that; it is my problem to deal with," he answered as she turned to him.

"I am just curious. I have been held as a prisoner for four years in that secluded cell; I was never transferred."

The Prince sighed and removed the medallion from his chest plate. "Then, I believe this belongs to you," he stated, holding it out to her. "That… is my medallion! How did you get it! It disappeared years ago." The Prince smiled slightly. "I found it near a riverbed one day, a few years ago. I decided to keep it," he lied.

"So, how, did you know it belonged to me?"

The Prince quickly sighed. "I am not sure, it just felt like it did," he replied, forcing the object into her hand.

She looked back at him as he walked over to Massoud. "There is something strange about that man; he is not normal," she thought.

"Massoud, I really must think you for what you did; had they found you, you would not be alive today."

Massoud shrugged. "You need not thank me, I owe you. However, what happened back there at Babylon?" he asked as the Prince leaned on the ship's railing. He then proceeded to explain the events since he unleashed the Sands of Time.

"Ah, I see. So after you reversed the flow of time and stopped yourself from unleashing the Sands, this Dahaka began pursuing you?"  
The Prince nodded. "Yes, but even after I destroyed the Dahaka and stopped the creation of the Sands, I am still doomed. Soon, all of Persia will be lost, because I was a fool."

Massoud placed his hand on the Prince's shoulder. "Do not be so melancholy. I am completely sure that if we work together, we can stop this Kamal and save whatever of Persia we can. What's done is done, my friend, there is no turning back."

The Prince closed his eyes and sighed. "You are right; I've been meddling with time for far too long. I have to face the present as it is."

Kaileena sat on the lone chair in the cabin. She leaned her head back and sighed before a small giggle could be heard. Her eyes shot open, and began to scan the small, wooden room.

Other than a somewhat large bed, a small bookcase and desk were all that furnished the room. Kailleena closed her eyes once more and attempted to sleep; the day had been **extremely** tiring.

"Are you happy now, Kaileena?"

She opened her eyes once more to see a young female child seated on the bed. "You… just who are you!" Kaileena exclaimed as the girl smiled. "You cannot escape your true fate, no one can. Time is extremely fragile, but you must survive, as you hold the greatest power."

"What do you mean?" she responded as the girl stood. "Oh, it is quite interesting. The Prince and his companions re only holding you back; holding you back from your destiny."

Kaileena's mouth opened slightly as the girl neared her. "Other than the Prince, who must pay dearly for his actions, Massoud and Farah are free from any punishment."

"Why must the Prince be harmed? What is this!"

The girl laughed. "I am surprised by your inability to comprehend that he is the cause of the pain of the world."

She cocked her head to the left as Kaileena remained still. "If you follow my words, no more harm will come to you and the others. As for now, travel to the Shrine of Beginnings."

"Shrine of Beginnings? What is that?" she replied as the girl began to pace around the room. "It is a creation of the Gods, meant for worshiping. It is lost under the waves now, but its power has been transferred to that of Karniak Temple, which is located to the west."

Kaileena nodded her head. "W-Why are you telling me this?" The girl laughed gleefully as she embraced Kaileena in a small hug. "It is a favor for you, to allow you a chance to fulfill your destiny."

She slowly returned the embrace as the girl tightened hers. "How I have longed to meet you, Kaileena," she stated before stepping back. "The name I was given at birth is Saeedeh, and that is what I would like you to refer to me as."

"Saeedeh; it feels vaguely familiar," Kaileena remarked as the girl smiled for a final time before dissipating into the air.

"Wait…" she murmured before sighing and glancing up towards the deck.

"They marked a destination," Massoud stated as he pointed to a small black dot on the map. I believe it's located roughly about a half day's journey to the west of our current location."

The Prince nodded. "That's fine, but we should hurry; Kamal and his group may already be ahead of us."

Massoud was about to comment on it when the ship shook violently. "What was that!" Farah shouted as a maroon tentacle shot through the ship towards her. The Prince quickly pushed her out of the way as the tentacle latched on to a pole.

Massoud watched in awe as an incredibly large squid rose from the sea and crashed back down.

"A… A… S-Sea creature!" he cried out as two more tentacles whipped through the ship.

"Massoud, get yourself ready!" the Prince ordered as he unsheathed the sword he stole from the soldier and lunged at one of the tentacles, slicing it cleanly in half and avoiding an attack with ease from the second whip.

Massoud snapped back into reality as he rushed past the Prince and down below the deck. "Stall for a few moments as I gather some weaponry!"

The Prince sighed in annoyance as he slashed through another tentacle shot at him.

(Well, how'd you like this chapter? I'm sort of making it up as I go along, well, that's how I normally do my stories anyway.)


	7. An Unfortunate Situation

(Yeah, I'm sorry if the chapter was slow, but the plot comes before decapitation, and for that my dear friend, I am sorry. Anyway, thank you all for your reviews and support. It's that, that motivates me to sit my butt at the computer and type, even if I don't want to. I even think of writing my 'Wild ARMS' story as an obligation some times, but I still do, because of the one reader I have for that story. In any case, let's go onto the chapter! Oh, Lady Discord, I made up Karniak Temple; but yes, the name sprouted from something I had heard before, or something.)

Jay Are Vee, Massoud, Saeedeh, Kamal, and Hesam are my own original characters.

One Last Chance:

Chapter Seven

Massoud quickly jerked open the ship's small armory, sorting through it quickly with his eyes. "This is so frustrating!" he exclaimed as he sighed. A few swords lay on wooden racks, along with some spears and daggers. There were three bows as well.

"What are you searching for?" Kaileena asked, walking out of one of the two cabins.

He glanced at her before grasping a bow and two swords. "If you have not noticed, we are under attack by a massive creature and we need to fend it off."

"Yes, yes, and are you done yet?" Farah inquired as she stepped down below deck.

"Yes," he answered, throwing her a bow. "Can you shoot a few arrows?" he sputtered. She nodded. "I'm most proficient in that, but could you please hand me some arrows? The bow is truly useless without them."

Massoud glanced from her to the armory and grasped a quiver. "Here, but I really do hope you can aim."

She nodded and hurriedly ran back up.

The Prince swiftly jumped, flipped, and rolled through the onslaught of lashes the squid executed as it tried to bring the ship down.

Suddenly, however, an arrow sailed at the beast, piercing its exposed body. The Prince glanced to the direction the arrow shot from to see Farah.

"I though you would need some help," she stated. He nodded and dodged a tentacle. "What of Massoud and Kaileena?" he asked quickly before a tentacle lashed out at Farah.

She ducked just in time as it crashed against the deck entrance and most of the surrounding area. The rubble collapsed down on the hallway as the Prince watched in horror.

"They were still under there, weren't they!" he demanded shakily as Farh continued to shoot at the squid. "Yes they were, but we don't have time! We can help them later, but we have to be alive to do that!" she yelled while firing another arrow as the Prince began to rush at the creature.

The arrow barely nicked him before it collided with the creature.

"What was that about!" he yelled at her as she scowled. "Well, you should pay more attention… Look out!"

The Prince barely noticed the tentacle before it slammed him straight through a mast, knocking him to the floor. The corresponding sail collapsed as the pole fell.

The Prince slashed through the mess and stood up, rushing in fury at the creature. He quickly leaped into the air towards it and plunged his sword into its soft membrane.

It shifted in agony while the Prince released his hold on the sword and dropped into the water. Farah fired a few more arrows, and soon the squid feel underneath the waves.

"Damn this! We'll never be able to get through this mess," Massoud stated as he inspected the rubble blocking the entrance. Kaileena half ignored him, thinking intently on Saedeeh and her words. Her destiny; what did it mean? The girl certainly could not have been mortal; a coldness emanated from her, and she was able to warp or teleport at any given time.

The ship rocked violently as it began to tilt to the right. "What!" Massoud exclaimed as they fell to the floor.

The Prince swam as hard as he could back to the ship. "It is beginning to tilt, the assault must have been too great," he thought as the ship began to gradually sink.

The Prince was completely useless to assist. He was much too far, and he no longer controlled the powers of time.

He squinted his eyes and noticed a figure leaping off the ship, most likely Farah.

The ship, however, continued to sink. "Massoud, Kaileena! No!" he muttered as the vessel sunk out of view. The Prince was frozen in shock, amazed at what just occurred. He and Farah would die as well, there was no hope of salvation. They would starve, or be consumed themselves, it made no difference.

The Prince ground his teeth in anger as a large shadow began to surround him. He took a few moments to notice this, but when he did, he quickly spun around to see he was floating no more than three yards away from an island.

The island seemed overly small, but a strange building was hidden behind a condensed forest. The bleak sky fit the backdrop well, and the Prince began to make his way towards the shore, grasping the sand and collapsing right at the spot.

A sudden weariness overtook him, and he began to feel himself drifting off to sleep.

His eyes closed, and the noise of the ocean and nature encased him. This was disrupted however, by a voice. It sounded distant, but it felt extremely near.

The Prince fought to awaken, but his body could scarcely move. He began to panic, his fear growing with every movement.

"Prince! Wake up!" Farah exclaimed as his eyes burst open and he sat up immediately.

He glanced at Farah quickly and stood up, examining the place. "Massoud… Kaileena… They were still…"

Farah nodded solemnly. "It is unlikely they escaped, but it is still possible." The Prince clenched his fist. "I let them die…" he murmured before looking up and seeing a ship beginning to approach the island.

"It's them, they were coming here," the Prince stated before grasping her arm and diving behind a mass of bushes within the forest.

After what seemed like an eternity the ship finally landed at the island. It was the exact same ship which was docked at the palace, and after a few moments, soldiers began to disembark.

The Prince spied Hesam walking off, and anger began to boil within him. However, he calmed himself down and remained still.

(For some reason, this chapter felt like it was of lesser quality than the previous ones. I suppose it's just my bad day. Oh well, I guess the only thing left for you to do know is review and wait for the next chapter.)


	8. A Delicate Movement

(I am so very sorry for the late chapter; school got in the way last weekend with the science fair project, which I was forced to do, and the week's been hectic. Well, hopefully this chapter won't disappoint.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Eight

Massoud examined the interior of the crushed hallway, searching for an exit. Water was already beginning to seep in, and the pressure would soon break the ship in two.

"Why are you just standing there?" he asked Kaileena as she stood near the back wall, seemingly in thought. He received no answer.

Cracks and holes sprouted and grew, allowing the hallway to become flooded in less than a few minutes afterwards. "Dammit! I cannot believe we are going to die here in this watery hell; I risked my life only to die!" he muttered while trying to remain afloat as the water level increased.

Kaillena shifted slightly and leaned against the wall. "We are not going to die, I can feel it."

"How can you be so sure?" he responded while scratching his head. "It is over…"

"You really are quite a pessimist, you know," spoke a child's voice near the pile of rubble. Massoud and Kaileena instantaneously looked up to see a young girl sitting on a piece of debris; her legs dangled peacefully in the water.

"Saeedeh…" she thought as the girl giggled. "Fortunately, I can easily assist you two in escaping from this predicament." Massoud rubbed his eyes and sneezed. "Hold on," he began. "Just who exactly are you, and from where did you appear?"

She stood up slowly and smiled. "Please quiet down, Massoud; I must concentrate for this to go efficiently."

He quickly silenced as a low rumbling began to occur within the hallway. It grew louder as a faint light took Saeedeh's place; it grew as well, and it soon filled the hallway, blinding Massoud and Kaileena.

Farah gradually rose from the bushes, scanning the area. "They all ventured inside the temple," she stated as the Prince stood as well. "How can you be sure? They most likely know we're here if they passed our ship."

She brushed a strand of hair aside. "Well, they might not, but I suggest we follow them inside."

He sighed and nodded, and they soon began to make their way towards the temple.

The building was very large; it took up most of the area of the small island. "How do you suppose we enter?" the Prince asked as they circled the southern and eastern walls. "I noticed they slipped in through the west wall," she replied. Sure enough, a wide hole had been blown through.

"How did they cause an explosion if we did not hear it?" the Prince thought aloud as Farah strode inside. "Come on; we are wasting time!"

The chamber they entered was damp and dusty; light seeped in through small cracks in the wall from the other rooms.

A rectangular doorway stood against the wall, and two concrete pillars held up a slab above the room.

"This way," Farah ordered before walking through the doorway. The Prince followed swiftly and they both soon found themselves in a long hallway, decorated with parallel pillars and pots.

He shut the door behind him and scanned the hallway as Farah walked around, inspecting it herself. The faint glow of the blocked out sun shone through the glass window above the landing of a staircase to the right. Aside from that small light, the hallway was consumed by darkness.

"They seemed to have moved on," he stated as she neared the staircase. "Well, they most likely ascended up, and we should too." She then began to walk upwards as the Prince sighed.

He followed, but a sudden noise alerted them both. Two armored soldiers had walked out of the shadows towards them.

"Ah, look; those little rats survived," one of them stated while grinning. His helmet reflected the light as he reached for the sword strapped to his side. The other soldier shivered. "You idiot! That's our former king's son; he's-," Before the soldier had finished though, the Prince had already flipped over him and stole the sword from its sheath, quickly stabbing him and decapitating him. He then threw the sword at the remaining soldier, but he had circled around and was preparing to strike.

The Prince ground his teeth and delivered a kick to the soldier's left leg. A shrill cracking noise occurred and he spun around to the soldier's backside, swiftly breaking his neck and kicking him to the floor.

"It seems they knew we were here; they would not have left guards to keep watch."

Farah bit her lip. "Yet, they only left two soldiers. Why do you think they did that?" The Prince cleared his throat. "They cannot spare too many men; they most likely need all the manpower they can acquire."

He looked up and began to climb the staircase.

Time felt as if it stopped; the staircase seemed to stretch on for an eternity. Finally, after a few minutes, they reached the next floor.

The corresponding room was relatively small compared to the hallway on the lower floor. There was a small corridor to the right, and the wall to the north was cut short to allow a large gap to lie between the room they stood in and another room. A series of wooden arches, planks, and beams connected to form multiple bridges to the other side.

The both of them walked to the edge and crouched down to see a group of soldiers scattered throughout the room below the gap. The Prince thought for a moment. "Farah, take the corridor there, and I will cross to the opposite side. If you cannot find me, I will find you, but be careful; there is no doubt more soldiers are stationed here."

She reluctantly nodded and walked over to the corridor entrance, stealing one last glance at the Prince before darting down the hall.

He sighed and began to gradually walk upon the beams, all the while watching his moves to make sure he did not alert them.

Suddenly, however, he tripped. He grasped the beam with his hands, and let out a small yelp, but that was enough.

Each of the soldiers looked up and noticed him; pointing and conversing they sped to the next room with the staircase.

He cursed and hurried his way to the other side. He dashed through the doorway and down a small set of steps, only to reach a somewhat secluded chamber. A wide gap filled with spikes lay to the right while a broken stone bridge connected to the left wall seemed to be the only accessible way.

The Prince sighed and gripped a jagged rock on the wall before running across the wall to the center platform. He repeated this to reach the other side, and then turned to the right and ran through the next doorway.

He stood in a much larger room, with small fountains dotted about the sides of the room. Three soldiers were standing at the center of the room. Two of them held Farah tightly by her arms while the other stood nearby.

"Well, I am most certainly glad you survived that horrible wreck; what of the other two?" Hesam asked casually as the Prince stood frozen near the door, which had been cut off by another three soldiers; he, and Farah, were trapped.


	9. The Progression of a Plan

(I know I'm updating earlier than usual, but why not?)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Nine

"Actually, I'm quite glad you survived, my Prince; it will allow me to have the pleasure of killing you," Hesam stated as he stared at the Prince, who stood still.

"Where is Kamal?" the Prince demanded, readying himself for anything. The older man chuckled. "Our superior is fulfilling his destiny, and at the same time condemning the world's."

"What do you mean!" The Prince felt his anger growing. All he felt like doing was to murder the man in front of him; the man who betrayed his father and family.

"Now, what does it matter to a man who is going to die? Yes, you must have an answer for that; am I right? If you can answer my question I'll surrender some information."

The Prince could not hold his fury in. He quickly struck the guard to his left and stole his sword, impaling him and removing the sword from the bloodied body. He let out a battle cry and dashed at the man, preparing to strike him down. Hesam grinned widely and dodged the attack, kicking his opponent to the floor.

"You really are pathetic, just like you're family. Your father was a coward and weak man; he relied on his colleagues and friends to wage wars and make decisions. Did he ever face an opponent? No, he did not, rather, he hid behind his "majestic empire"."

He bent down and grasped the younger man by his throat, raising him into the air so they were at eye- level.

"I have to thank you, really; it was because of you that our superior was born, and he will now send the world through its rebirth!" He began to laugh. "But, we need a sacrifice, and our Empress, unfortunately died, so this young lady will have to suffice."

The Prince ground his teeth and spat into Hesam's face. The older man took a cloth from a pocket and wiped his face, shoving the man down.

"So, you want to die quickly, eh? Fine the, you can join your father in Hell!"

He unsheathed his sword and was about to pierce the Prince, but his adversary swiftly blocked the attack and rose up, grabbing his left arm and shoving the blade through his abdomen. Hesam choked as the metal sailed through his spine.

The Prince thrust the sword farther through the older man's body. His hatred began to pour out of him as he watched the man grin as blood seeped from his mouth. "I suppose I underestimated you… but you can't stop… My Lord; he will… bring the world into a new era!"

"Why?" the younger man muttered through ground teeth. Hesam chuckled again. "He does this… out of hatred and revenge. You… stole his destiny, and he is returning the favor, but you're too late," he whispered, moving his eyes towards the three soldiers who were already running out of the room with Farah in their arms.

"Farah!" the Prince exclaimed as Hesam laughed loudly. "You cannot stop it you fool!" The younger man kicked the man to the ground and sheathed his sword. "Farah!" he shouted again while chasing after them, while the other guards were left in bewilderment.

Kaileena awoke groggily, trying to focus her eyes. She was lying down on a bed, and there was a small mat on the wooden floor. The room was evidently small, and Massoud was beginning to awaken on the floor.

Light was flowing in from the open doorway, and she slowly stood up and walked outside.

The room she was previously in was really a small hut, lined up with many others. The road before her was dusty, and different papers and trash were littered up. It seemed to be dawn, and great buildings and palaces could be seen in the distance.

"Where are we?" she muttered as footsteps could be heard. "Babylon, Kaileena, Babylon."

She spun around to see Saeedeh walking towards her, a smile on her face. "Babylon? But that's impossible! That city has been destroyed!"

The girl giggled. "Why, it is not the Babylon you know, but the one I know. This is the home I once had before the accident happened."

Kaileena approached the girl and kneeled down to face her. "What do you mean, 'your Babylon'? Who are you?"

Saeedeh sighed and walked away. "This is not a real place; it comes from my memories. Those memories are gone though; I never met my mother. Have you?"

"No, I did not have a mother; I was just 'there'."

"How can you be just, 'there'? If you are mortal, you require a mother to be born."

Kaileena rose to her feet and sighed. "I cannot explain it, but how did you bring Massoud and I here?"

The girl glanced around. "If you truly want to know, I am only a ghost, a lonely ghost who wanders this world. I've been searching for my mother, but I haven't completely found her yet; no, not yet, but I am close."

The Prince ran as fast as he could through the hallway, jumping and running on walls when necessary. Flight after flight of stairs descended downwards, each spiraling at the end and leading to another doorway.

He began to grow irritated with this, his patience draining when he approached a sixth staircase.

Finally, however, the seventh staircase led to a hallway, which extended to another room, much larger and wider than the previous ones.

A huge altar rested at the center of the chamber, and the three soldiers seemed to be tying or pinning a body up on a cross over the altar. A crimson colored sword was wedged into the altar, and Kamal was watching all this, barely noticing the Prince had arrived.


	10. A Sword and a Revelation

One Last Chance:

Chapter Ten

Kamal grinned happily as he examined the chamber; everything was going according to his plan, everything. Once Farah was sacrificed he would gain control over the Cobra Sword and the Water Sword; with their power he could bend time to his every whim and desire.

He chuckled and looked around, suddenly noticing the Prince standing upon a small set of steps leading to the upper floors.

"Ah, so you finally decided to join us," he stated while slowly approaching the Prince, who was calmly eyeing their settings. The soldiers standing around the altar had noticed this intrusion and had readied themselves.

"Well, I'm somewhat surprised that Hesam failed to stop you; whatever happened to him?"

"He's dead," the Prince replied coldly, his gaze meeting that of Kamal's. "Hmm, I see, well it does not matter; you are too late. The ceremony will soon be complete, and once this girl's soul has been offered, I will gain control of time itself; you cannot stop me."

The Prince frowned. "We shall see…" He leaped into the air, preparing to attack his alter ego, but the soldiers in the room advanced forward and drew their weapons. The Prince cried out and effortlessly slashed through them, his sword splattering blood across the floor as the mutilated bodies fell.

Kamal cleared his throat. "You seem to be angry, well, I suppose you have the right to be. So then, are you going to kill me? If that is what you are planning, it is impossible. The both of us cannot take the life of the other."

"Then I will have to make you suffer!" the Prince exclaimed and rushed at his adversary; his blade raised above his head. Kamal merely unsheathed the Water Sword from his back and blocked the attack.

"It is useless to attempt to fight me; I am superior to you."

"We will see if that is true!" The Prince slashed horizontally, but Kamal back flipped and then jumped over his opponent, slicing him in the back. Blood fell from the Prince's back as he fell to his knees. "In only a matter of seconds I have disabled you; I would recommend you do not get up."

The Prince roared and rolled forward, quickly standing and attacking with a combo. Kamal swiftly blocked and avoided the assault; he retaliated by knocking the blade away and kicking his opponent to the floor.

The Prince only became more infuriated and lunged at Kamal, knocking him down. "Damn you! You are the responsible for ruining my entire life!" he shouted before attempting a punch, which Kamal caught with his left hand. "You blame me? But you are the one who is truly at fault." He then pounded his own fist into the Prince's left cheek. The impact slammed him to the floor.

The Prince spat out some blood and began to stand before Kamal kicked him against the altar. "Face it you fool, you are the one responsible for the death of your father and brothers. Had you not found the Dagger of Time none of this would have happened; that falling boulder would have killed you, and the Dahaka would not have had to chase you around the world. In the end, everyone except for yourself would be fine, and the dagger would have been lost. But that is not so, and you must accept that, as I have."

The Prince sat up and leaned against the altar, watching as Kamal neared him. "I may not be able to finish you, but I can stop you from interfering any longer."

He then swung his blade, but the Prince quickly reached for the sword wedged into the altar. He jerked it out, and to Kamal's surprise, it slid out easily, meeting the tip of the Water Sword and colliding.

Kamal was forced back and a distortion in the air became apparent. It resembled that of a large tear, flapping wildly as a bright light shot out from it.

"Well, how very convenient; I will not need the Cobra Sword any longer," he stated while approaching the rift. "Perhaps we will meet again, but I highly doubt it." He then walked into the light and disappeared as the room began to tremble violently. Debris fell from the ceiling and cracks appeared in the floor. Water began to seep in.

The Prince ground his teeth and slowly stood up, using the altar as support. He quickly sheathed the sword away and climbed up onto the structure; he released Farah from the cross and jumped down. She was unconscious, but still very alive.

He glanced around the room, searching for an exit. Seeing none, he reluctantly held Farah's limp body in his arms and ran through the light.

Saeedeh sat upon a small piece of debris and sighed. "I was only a young child when my mother and I died. It was much too long ago for me to remember how, but I never knew my mother. That is why I have been searching for her these past six years. My spirit has been aging, and I was starting to realize that I would most likely never find her, until, however, just a few days ago. The Prince, the one responsible for her death, had also given me access to finding her."

Kaileena rubbed her eyes. "What did the Prince do to have caused your mother's death?"

The girl sighed. "I am not sure, but his meddling with time made her sick, and she passed away. I was hoping I would find her somewhere, but I did not, and I finally realize why."

Kaileena glanced at the ground as Saeedeh smiled. "I had been looking in the wrong place the entire time. She had always been there, right in front of me, but I did not realize that she had been existing in a time and place parallel to mine."

She approached Kaileena and grasped her hand gently. "It is because you are my mother, Kaileena. You may not be the same one of gave birth to me, but I do not care; I finally found you!"

Kaileena backed away. "That cannot be possible! The Timeline never showed me a separate reality to my own."

"It would not have; time is different between our realities." Saeedeh frowned. "You need not be frightened of me, mother, but I must bring justice to my home. The youngest prince of Persia will be punished for what he did to you!"


	11. A Growing Shadow

(All right… well, not to offend any of my readers, but I agree with Lady Discord on the contents of her review. No, the Prince is not Saeedeh's father; she basically wants to make him suffer. Look, the chances of Farah and the Prince in another relationship is slim, for two reasons: the first is that I'm not good with romance, and the second is that this story takes place after Warrior Within. Sure, the Prince would grieve over losing Farah for a time, but I doubt he had much time to sulk when a giant, crudely armored behemoth with mismatched horns started to chase him and try to kill him. Please, I don't mean to direct this to anyone; it was only my opinion.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Eleven

The Prince rolled onto his side as his eyes shot open. His body ached in pain, and he gradually rose to his knees.

A cold breeze chilled his skin and the light from a new dawn forced him to shield his eyes. He grunted and stood up, surveying the area.

He had been, apparently, unconscious near a small stream, somewhere in a forest.

The Prince sighed and noticed Farah's sleeping body a few feet away. He rubbed his eyes and approached her, kneeling down to awake her.

"Farah, wake up!" he exclaimed while shaking her shoulder with his right arm. She winced slightly and opened her eyes, blinking a few times to regain focus.

"Where… are we?" she asked sleepily before standing and brushing her clothing off. The Prince shrugged and noticed the crimson sword lying on the ground. He bent down and picked it up, sheathing it before turning to her. "I have no idea, but we're not in the temple anymore; you don't remember anything, do you?"

"No, just that perverted soldier knocking me out. What happened, by the way?"

"Kamal was preparing to sacrifice you for something; he claimed he needed this sword. This, 'Cobra Sword', reacted to the Water Sword and created a portal of some sort. He went through the portal, and so did we."

Farah groaned. "Well then, let us get going!"

The two began to traverse through the forest, going straight ahead. After about an hour or so, they reached a steep cliff, protruding out towards a city.

"We're so high up; would we be atop a mountain?" The Prince did not answer; he was more or less focused on the city. "Impossible… Babylon! We must be in the past!" he stated in a mixture of joy and surprise.

"What do you mean? The past? That's absurd!"

"You wouldn't understand… well, you might have… once, but… wait, how long were you imprisoned at the prison beneath the palace?"

She shook her head. "I suppose seven years, since the Persian army downed my father's empire; why do you ask?"

The Prince sighed and folded his arms. "Yes… but how far are we back in the past? I stopped the Sands of Time, and killed the Dahaka, which means that I never took part in that battle… Well, in any case, we have to go and warn my father and brothers; I am not entirely sure if an Indian army attacked Babylon at the time Hesam betrayed my family, but I have to stop this; it is my last chance."

The royal garden always provided a tranquil place for the Prince; it allowed him to rest and escape from the real world.

He strolled through it pleasantly; the sweet aroma of flowers greeted him as he passed through a gate, nearing a stone bench and taking a seat. His fresh clothes were still a tad damp from his recent bath, but he decided to allow the sun to dry them.

He sighed and leaned back, frowning. His father, the king of Persia, had been busily preparing for an attack on Southern India, defeating a few empires and gaining whatever he could. The Persian army, King Sharaman, and three of his brothers had already departed for India the day before, and he, along with two of his closest brothers in age, were left in charge of the palace and their affairs.

The Prince sighed again and stood up, stretching and letting out a yawn. He began to make his way back into the palace, but a cold voice stopped him.

"Would you be…"

"So, sir, are you willing to allow me to work here?" confirmed a young woman. Her clothing reflected her level of status, and she clearly came from a poor family, or background. Her long, black hair flowed down her back, and she anxiously awaited an answer from the man sitting at the desk.

Farzad thought for a moment, rapping his fingers atop the wood. "If you are willing to work as a servant here at the palace, then I am pleased to grant you an occupation. You and your daughter will gain living quarters here at the palace. The guard here will escort you and your daughter to your quarters."

"Thank you, sir!" The woman bowed politely and grasped her daughter's hand, leading her out of the room as they followed the guard. Farzad rubbed his eyes and leaned back in the wooden chair. His youngest and closest brother would soon be of age, and he would need a wife.

Saeedeh sighed slowly as she led Kaileena through the city. "I'm sure it was today that you died, but I was much younger, three to four, I suppose."

Kaileena frowned. "What of Massoud? Are you just going to leave him there?" The girl ignored the question and smiled. "Please, mother, we must hurry to reach the palace so that I can show you the events of your… passing… but do not fear; it is only your alternate self."

"Alternate? Yes, this is not my timeline…"

"No, yet-,"

"What is it!" the woman inquired urgently as the girl fell to her knees. "There's a disturbance… that was not here when I was a child…"

Kaileena helped the girl up. "We... have to hurry to the palace and stop whatever event that ended your life," she stated as the girl nodded. "We cannot stop it, at least not at the moment, be we must still hurry."

The Prince and Farah approached the outskirts of the inner city, which was extremely shabby and steeped in poverty. Numerous shacks and small houses composed of carpets and rags littered the barren, dusty plain. Merchants were busy preparing their stalls, citizens were going about their morning errands, but not much occurred in the area.

As the Prince and Farah walked through the area, someone beckoned to them from beside a shack.

"Hey, both of you!" Massoud yelled, gaining the attention of the Prince. "Massoud, is… it really you!" he asked in surprise as he ran over to his friend. "Where is Kaileena? What has been going on?"

"H-Hold on, first, tell me about you two."

After explaining the situation to Massoud and listening about the other events, the Prince seemed somewhat fearful. "So, from what you observed, this 'Saeedeh', is taking Kaileena to the royal palace?"

"Yes, but I am not sure of what is happening there; I am still bewildered by how we even came to the past, more specifically, an alternate past."

The Prince nodded. "Yes, but the only option we have left is to venture to the palace; whatever Kamal is planning could already have been set in motion."

The dark- cloaked figure approached the Prince slowly. "H-How did you get past the guards and enter the garden!"

The person laughed coldly. "I am not here to deal with you, but, rather, a woman; she should be in the palace." The Prince ground his teeth. "You will not gain access to my father's palace, and you will not bring harm to anyone, I will make absolute sure!"

Kamal chuckled. "Foolish… you are no different than your counterpart."

(Yeah, I know it's been awhile.)


	12. Pawns

(Hey, it seems I'm updating again, and I think it's a good thing too. This chapter's going to be big, and probably hold one of the biggest confrontations yet. It might even be the best chapter yet, as well.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Twelve

"Move aside foolish boy; my business here is not with you," Kamal stated. The Prince readied himself. "I-I do not know who you are, but you will not enter the palace!" he replied. Kamal grinned and removed his hood.

"W-Who are you?"

"My prince, I suggest you to move."

"I-I will not!"

"I suppose I cannot alter your decision…" He drew his Water Sword and dashed at the Prince.

"This Babylon… it cannot be…" the Prince muttered to himself as Massoud glanced around. "It is almost time…" he stated before approaching a fountain in the plaza a road before the palace entrance.

"Is something wrong?" Farah asked him. He turned to her. "No… I was just pondering over this… If Kamal is here, he might already be at the palace, and then we would have failed."

She smiled. "We should not worry; you must be more optimistic."

"Yes, perhaps you are right."

The clear, blue blade sliced through each of the Persian soldiers which opposed it. Kamal was enjoying himself slightly, knowing that is goal would finally be achieved. "This feeling… it is so exhilarating!" he cried as he wiped out another three soldiers.

"What is this madness?" Farzad thought as two soldiers approached him. "Sir, this intruder cannot be stopped; he is like a demon!" one of them stated fearfully. Farzad grasped his sword. "Nevertheless, we cannot allow this to happen! How will my father be if he came back to his kingdom to see his entire palace slaughtered? Where is my younger brother?"

"We believe he was in the garden, sir."

"The garden? No! The intruder might have already found him! I want you two to find him while I meddle with this intruder."

"Yes sir!" they answered in unison and ran out of the hallway. Farzad ground his teeth and ran towards the entrance chamber.

"Mommy… what's happening?" Saeedeh asked her mother as she set a book on a drawer. "Do not go out Saeedeh; lock the door."

"But Mommy…"

A guard forced the door open, knocking the young girl down. "Take your child and escape through the back entrance with the other servants!"

"What-,"

The guard ran off before Kaileena could finish, but she ignored it and helped Saeedeh. "Come, it is not safe here any longer."

The Prince stood up, clutching his wound. "How… could I have fallen so easily… He slashed me once, only once…" He used the wall as support and entered the palace, noticing a number of scattered, mutilated body. "He must have plowed through them effortlessly… They will never last against this monstrosity…"

Kamal slit another guard's throat as he entered another hallway. "Where is the Empress! This is becoming extremely frustrating!"

He began to run through more corridors, killing each poor soul that interfered.

Kaileena led her four year- old daughter through the crowds, avoiding panicked servants, slaves, nobles, and guards. There was a sudden scream, and then another. The woman hurriedly squeezed her offspring's hand tightly and ran into a large, outdoor garden.

"The eastern gardens…"

"Hmm… finally, I found you…"

She spun around to see a dark figure standing in the doorway. Two guards in the area rushed at him with their spears, but he cut through them easily.

"W-What do you want!" she demanded as he neared them. "Please, Empress, just had me your daughter; if you cooperate, you can live."

"W-What do you mean? I am no empress, and I would never allow my daughter into harm!"

Kamal smiled. "It is hardly harm; I only have to extract the Sands from her."

"Stop!" The Prince ran into the garden, holding a blade in his right hand as he held his left over the wound.

"I see you survived…"

"Yes, and I saw what you did to my brother; he did not deserve that!"

Kamal held the Water Sword ready. "Do not interfere, I will-,"

"Kamal!" The Prince, Farah, and Massoud rushed in through an entryway opposite the doorway to the palace.

Kamal turned to them. "What a nuisance you fools are! Each time I am about to clear an important objective you must always get in the way! However, you did bring me something very crucial…"

"Is does not matter, Kamal! I will kill you! There was no need to run rampant through the palace!"

"Yes… this is exactly how I remember it…"

Each of them turned to see Saeedeh and Kaileena walk through the doorway. The past Prince and Kaileena backed away, startled. "W-What is all of this! You two… are the same as they are, only somewhat older."

Kamal turned to the present Saeedeh. "I see… so you are the shell that was left when I extracted the Sands of Time before…"

"The Sands of Time!" the present Prince demanded as Kamal faced him. "Of course, even if the alternate Empress did not hold her duty, she still held the Sands within her; when her daughter was born, the Sands were passed onto her, so I must extract the Sands from the girl, and for that I require the medallion… correct, Massoud?"

Massoud nodded and reached into his cloak, removing Farah's medallion from it before walking over to him.

"My medallion! You were the one who took it while we were still on the ship!" she snapped as Massoud turned to them.

Kamal laughed. "Yes, in a sense. Massoud was working with me since the beginning; he was the only one I revealed my true plan too; Hesam was nothing more than a tool to grant me my services, courtesy of the Persian kingdom."

The present Prince was wide- mouthed; it gradually morphed into an expression of hatred. "You were using us since the beginning! I would never… have expected you, Massoud! Was our childhood friendship meaningless!"

Massoud began to speak. "I had little choice…"

"No! I should not have been so trustworthy!" He unsheathed the Cobra Sword. "I will finish this now, once and for all!"

(This all came to me, like, yesterday… The story isn't over yet! There's still a lot left, regardless of what happens next time.)


	13. The Return of Darkness

(Well, I used my Action Replay to see the normal ending to the game; it spared me the agony of beating the game all over again, even thought it is a great game.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Thirteen

Arad was almost always liberal when it came to believing things. Rather than consider something fictional because of a lack of evidence, he would usually think up different scenarios as to why the incident, for example, occurred. This attribute, if one would call it that, made him an unlikely candidate for the throne of Persia, but he always thought he was unfit for the title of 'king'.

In the days when he was younger, his time would be spent looking after his youngest brother, him being the second youngest. He was older than his brother by five years, but this never bothered him. He personally would teach his brother various sword techniques, among other things. Yet, even though Arad was normally cheerful, his optimism had drained as he rode back to Babylon. His older sibling, Farzad, had been left in charge of the palace as long as their father and other brothers were away in India. Farzad was a responsible, yet kind, man, and Arad had no concerns over the condition of the palace, but his recent errand outside the capital city had scared him, too much for a man of his type of emotion.

It was not the errand itself, yet the reason. A soldier, who was a good friend of Arad's on a personal basis, had died during the voyage to India; according to letter, a great, black shadow had spread out over the ship. Some of the survivors described the shadow as being man- shaped, yet so horrific was its true form that some men had gone mad. The shadow had supposedly went down below deck and enveloped the soldier, taking him. The moment he disappeared, the shadow evaporated.

The soldier was named Rahim, and he had been a childhood friend of Arad and his younger brother when they were children. After discovering this news, Arad had traveled out of the city to a small altar out in the forest to pray, and it was there that he discovered a peculiar dagger with a golden glow emanating from it. The dagger's blade contained strange, golden sand, which seemed to hypnotize Arad whenever he looked at it. He kept this dagger with him, since this dagger had been Rahim's personal, inherited possession.

He had obtained the dagger that morning, and he was now heading back into Babylon, and he found it in an abstract state. There was a commotion within the city, and Arad had no idea of what it could be over. Seeing this as an unusual situation, he had hurried his pace to the palace, and his mind worked overtime to try and place everything in order, but when he reached the palace, he was shocked beyond words.

Countless deceased bodies with signs of blade wounds were scattered about, and servant, guards, or nobles left were running about in a crazed manner. There was no order, and Arad made his way straight to Farzad's office.

With a loud cry, the Prince lunged at Kamal, the Cobra Sword arched over his head. Massoud had moved out of the way, and Kamal met the attack with his own; the two locked blades for a moment before the Prince exploded into a flurry of slashes. Kamal blocked each, and retaliated with a horizontal slash. The Prince spun to the side and back flipped, avoiding the next attack.

He ground his teeth and threw himself at Kamal, hitting him with such force that he knocked him through a wall and into a separate room in the palace.

The past Prince, Kaileena, and Saeedeh were, among everything else, bewildered by the situation, but Massoud had begun to back away.

"Wait!" Kaileena stepped forward, before the entrance of the palace, taking two swords from a pot on a podium to the left. Massoud frowned. "I don not have a quarrel with any of you, so just let me leave; I've done what Kamal wished me to do."

"Perhaps, but you tricked all of us; I cannot forgive you for such treachery!" Farah had also taken a bow from a slain soldier, aiming at arrow.

"So, both of you want to stop me? What have I really done to cause any harm?" Massoud asked seriously as he glanced back at Farah. "You stole me medallion, and used us like pawns! You were the one who released us from the dungeons; while I may not have treated you with as much respect as I thought you deserved, I trusted you!" she exclaimed before arching the arrow. Massoud closed his eyes and sighed before grasping a sword from another pot. "If I cannot deter your judgment, then I suppose I have no choice then to use force."

He moved his right elbow back and laid the tip of the blade on his outstretched left palm. The present Saeedeh, fidgeted slightly, looking up to the sky. "This… did not happen before; Massoud, Farah, Kaileena… None of them were present, so why is it happening here?" she thought as Kaileena swiped at Massoud, who avoided the attack.

He countered with a combo of his own, but she easily blocked each of the slashes, jumping back and attacking again. Farah was busy trying to get a clear shot at the man. "If they keep it up like this, I'll have no chance to release the arrow!"

Kamal twirled around and knocked the Cobra Sword aside, slashing the Prince in the chest. His leather armor split slightly, but the Prince only rolled around Kamal and attacked him from the back, but the dark figure only back flipped over the Prince, kicking him to the floor. The Prince broke into a roll and stood up, throwing his weapon at his adversary. Kamal stepped to the side and dodged the projectile, however, the Prince used the opportunity to assault Kamal with a punch to the face. He forced him back a foot, giving him enough time to recover the Cobra Sword.

The Prince flinched and backed away from his opponent, taking advantage of the large room. Kamal chuckled. "Rage can only get you so far, but acting recklessly will only get you killed," he stated as they circled around the room.

The Prince smirked. "We'll see… once you are dead!" He ran at Kamal, preparing to strike. The dark version of the Prince countered against the slash, spinning around to kick the Prince in the back.

The Prince turned around, recovering from the blow quickly and grasping a small mace from hanging on the wall as a decorative piece. He threw the weapon at Kamal, but he knocked it away with his sword. The Prince roared and, using as much strength as he could muster from his fatigued body, vaulted over Kamal, slashing him in the back and kicking him away. Kamal flipped back up when he touched the floor, but the Prince grasped a pillar in the room and launched himself off of it at Kamal, who had not expected the move. The Cobra Sword's tip collided with Kamal's leather armor, piercing it and digging it into his skin. The Prince forced the blade through in a stabbing motion, knocking Kamal outside and against a bench.

Kamal only winced however, before standing and kicking the Prince down.

Kaileena and Massoud kept the rhythm of their blades intact, attacking and countering each other. Farah still struggled to get a clear shot at Massoud. "Kaileena, move!" she yelled before releasing the arrow. It sailed beautifully through the air at Massoud, but he noticed it from the corner of his eye, slashing it in half the moment it neared him. Kaileena seized the opportunity and attacked, but he blocked it and pushed her down.

"Enough of this! To think my training could have been so effortlessly matched? I will not allow this to continue! I do not want to fight!" he shouted before throwing his sword against the floor.

Kaileena rose to her feet as the ground began to tremble. A dark shadow began to seep across the area, enshrouding everything. It blocked out the sun, attracting the attention of everyone. A huge figure lumbered out of the cloud of darkness, its horns protruding through the air. Two crimson eyes could be seen in the figure's head; its huge body glowed golden as a grainy substance flowed through its body.

The Dahaka roared in what seemed to be triumph. The Prince and Kamal stared at in horror as two golden tentacles shot through the ground, wrapping themselves around Massoud and Farah. "What is this beast?" Farah shouted as Kaileena stood frozen. Massoud only stared at its eyes, his body shaking in fright.

"Impossible! The Dahaka…? I killed you!" the Prince shouted before grasping the Cobra Sword and running at the entity. Kamal stood slowly, surveying the situation. The past Prince and Kaileena were shocked in fright, and the past Saeedeh was clutching her mother's arm tightly.

Saeedeh, however, cocked her head to the left, slightly amused.

The Prince leapt at the beast, attempting a slash, but another tentacle shout out from the Dahaka's stomach, stabbing his lower stomach area and raising him into the air. The Prince cried out in anguish and swiped at the tentacle, but the blade only bounced away.

Kamal grabbed the Water Sword and ground his teeth. "Damn you! I will not be taken again; I will be the one to merge with the Sands!"

(Introducing Super Dahaka! No, just joking, but as you can see, the Dahaka has changed, and more will be explained next chapter.)


	14. The Weakness

(Well, Jay Are Vee, you can't assume that I'm going to kill off Massoud just because the Super Dahaka wrapped his tentacle around him. No, he's not going to force them together for his naughty purposes, and for that merger thing… you're not entirely correct.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Fourteen

"How is this possible? How is it still alive?" Kamal demanded as he approached Saeedeh, who watched the situation with interest. "Can you not figure it out? Your counterpart, Farah, Massoud, and Kaileena do not belong in this time, especially an alternate time. However, this is the same Dahaka your counterpart killed, only an alternate, just like this timeline."

"It is stronger though; how is that?"

"In a separate timeline parallel to yours, the Dahaka was not killed by the Prince of Persia, and only absorbed Kaileena, thus absorbing the Sands of Time."

"How can there be another alternate timeline?"

"Yes, but that was not an alternate timeline, only a separate one, connected to your main one."

"Wait, so the Dahaka is not one, single entity throughout all of time, even alternate timelines."

Saeedeh sighed. "Time cannot be allowed to be disturbed, which is why this Dahaka was born. In truth, the Dahaka which survived in the other timeline ceased existing because it was killed in the other, which is why the Sands passed onto the alternate Dahaka."

Kamal shook his head. "The Sands… what of them?"

"The Sands of time exist in entirety; in the future, past, and present. The Sands the Dahaka has are those of your time's, while the Sands my past self has are those of the past's." Kamal clutched the Water Sword tighter. "And yet you brought them here, to die…?" Saeedeh giggled. "No, not exactly. The Prince is responsible for this all, so he should be held responsible and be punished. Farah and Massoud are only caught up in this, but once I reform time itself, they will be revived in a perfect timeline, and my mother and I can finally be happy."

"Reform time itself; madness! That is improbable!"

"And yet possible; all I need is for Kaileena to follow me to the Essence, and it will be achieved!" She giggled once more. "That is the true destiny of the Empress of Time! Kaileena is the only one who can unlock the Essence of Time, which is why I forced that squid to attack the ship, and leave her unavailable for you to use as a sacrifice to wield the Cobra Sword; the Prince however, was not infused with the Water Sword's energy at the time, and was able to use the Cobra Sword."

Kamal backed away. "So, you've been orchestrating this, bending everything to your favor…"

"Yes, but I have no godly powers; I am one with time itself. Once time is unlocked, my soul will be freed, and a true, perfect time will exist!"

Kamal grinned. "But you're only a child! This plot of yours, is the result of a child's dream; it is unfathomable!" He readied the Water Sword. She smiled. "So, you will strike me down?"

"I do not want to be a part of a child's dream; I want to gain the power of the Sands of Time, and rule all of existence! You aspire to achieve a dream!" He advanced forward and slashed at Saeedeh, slicing her image in half, only causing it to begin to fade.

"A dream, Kamal? We are the same, deprived of our lives and everything meaningful to us. I suppose you are only a dream yourself…"

She faded completely, leaving Kamal to stand there for a moment. "A dream…?"

The Dahaka transfigured the tentacle around the Prince to clamp around him. It let out a laugh of some sort and swung the limb to the ground, slamming the Prince down. He cried out in agony as the beast did it again, and again.

Kaileena snapped back into reality and barely jumped to the side as another tentacle lashed out at her. "We cannot defeat it!" she thought aloud as the tentacles suddenly fell apart. Kamal landed swiftly onto the ground before standing from his crouched position. "I am not a dream! I am reality!" He roared and swiped at the Dahaka in the stomach, causing a tear in its abdomen. It staggered back slightly, allowing Farah, Massoud, and the Prince to gain their composure.

"Why are you helping us?" the Prince asked Kamal in-between breaths. "I… We must work together to stop this creature. Call it a truce if you will, but afterwards, we are enemies."

The Prince nodded and held the Water Sword ready as the Dahaka stood straight, before becoming consumed by the cloud again. "What? Where is it…?"

"The palace," Kamal confirmed before running inside the building. The others followed, leaving the Prince last to enter the building.

"Wait, please!" called the past Prince as he approached his future, alternate self. "That creature… You will need my assistance if you want to defeat both of them."

The present Prince shook his head. "No, you'll only get yourself killed; for now, your duty is to help regain the palace. This is not your battle; help the young woman and her daughter out of danger, and then help the other civilians."

"It is not your place to give me commands!" the past Prince retorted.

"Perhaps, but I know of what I am speaking! Do not get yourself involved; you will regret it." He then turned and headed into the palace, leaving the past Prince to only stare.

"Well then, miss, let us get going."

Arad entered his brother's office casually, glancing around. "He's not present; where-," he muttered before the wall suddenly collapsed in. A large, dark shadow approached him, in the shape of a giant. Arad, startled, backed away, holding the dagger as his only defense. The shadow advanced, and with a loud cry, Arad leapt forward and plunged the dagger into the beast's abdomen. The Dahaka roared in pain as a small amount of sand seeped into the dagger's blade from its wound.

Arad pulled his arm back and ran from the room and out of the hallway as the Dahaka chased after him.

He ran out into the entrance lobby, stepping over a few bodies as the beast turned into the chamber, enshrouding almost everything in darkness.

"No, you damn beast!" Kamal shouted as he rolled in front of the Dahaka, with the others close behind.


	15. The Carrier of the Sands

(Not much to say… Huh, well, actually, this chapter _might_ include an extremely huge event, so huge that some of you may not like it; please keep in mind that I know what I'm doing, and this event, not to spoil it, will be resolved in the conclusion of the story… in some way, mind you… I say this because I wouldn't want any of you to stop reading, but that is entirely your decision.)

One Last Chance:

Chapter Fifteen

The Prince turned to the woman and her daughter, eyeing them. "What is the matter?"

The woman shook her head and stood straight. "Where… are we supposed to go? I have no other place, and-," The Prince grasped her right shoulder gently. "Why did you come to here?" Kaileena flinched. "I came to work here as a servant; it would allow my daughter more favorable living conditions."

He pulled his arm away and turned his head to examine the once beautiful garden; the one place he could relax completely within. Pots had fallen over or shattered; a tree or two had been slightly uprooted; the flooring had been ripped apart.

He looked back at Kaileena, but then fixated his gaze on the young girl. She returned the stare, looking up at him sadly. Her hand remained in her mother's.

The Prince winced, lowering his hand to his wound. Saeedeh continued to look at him, but her mouth began to move, as if to speak. "Mommy… He looks like the bad man…" she murmured, just barely heard.

Kaileena shrugged and smiled weakly. "That wound, it must be tended to."

He shook his head. "Your daughter's right; there is an uncanny resemblance between those other two men and myself, but the pale one… He's not entirely human, I know that, but he came here with ill intentions for you and your daughter. Those other people… They all feel vaguely familiar, but I've never seen or met them before. Only the other woman and the girl; they appear exactly as you two do, but the girl emanates a peculiar feeling; she is not your daughter, so go and leave this place before the same fate falls upon this girl."

Kaileena glanced at Saeedeh but then back at the Prince. "How can-,"

"Just go; the conversation between those people tells me that the matters they are involved in are unearthly. Please, take your daughter and leave, quickly."

Kaileena thought for a moment, pulling her daughter close. "Fine then, we shall leave."

"Thank you… it is not safe."

The Prince turned to face the palace doorway, making his way towards it. "Where are you going?" she asked casually, watching him. "I have to stop more innocent lives from being taken; besides, the palace is in danger."

"That's madness; you'll most likely die."

"Yet it is a risk I have to take. There are too many unanswered questions about what just happened, and I must make sure it is stopped."

"W-Who are all of you?" Arad questioned in surprise as the others joined Kamal. The Dahaka eyed each of them, its gaze falling on the two princes. It clenched its fists and fired a mass of tentacles at the entire group. The Prince quickly pushed Arad out of the way as the rest ran to the sides. Kamal, however, stood his ground and slashed through the extensions.

The Dahaka growled and ran at its adversary, thrusting its fist down at him. Kamal back flipped out of the way; he then jumped back up and prepared to strike the beast, only to have two tentacles grasp his body and slam him into the wall.

The Prince dashed at the Dahaka, rolling under a tentacle and slashing at its upper torso. It attempted to hit him with the back of its left fist, but he rolled under the attack and swiped again.

The Dahaka was not fazed by the attack and punched the fatigued Prince, his body flying to collide with the wall.

"We have to help them!" Farah exclaimed while raising the bow, but Kaileena pushed the weapon down. "No, our attacks wouldn't affect it; only those swords seem to have any real effect."

Arad listened to their brief converse, glancing at the dagger he still held in his hand. "The dagger…" He looked back up as the Prince began to stand.

"I can't keep this up for much longer… My body cannot provide me with the agility and strength I need; this has to be finished now!" he thought while holding the Cobra Sword to his side.

He ground his teeth and ran full speed at the Dahaka, readying his assault. Arad watched this and prepared to throw the dagger. "I may not know these people, but this creature must be silenced!"

"Catch!" he shouted before throwing the light object towards the Prince, who was barely alerted by the sound of his voice. He skidded to a stop and caught the weapon, fumbling slightly. He quickly held it up, glancing back at Arad and then at the dagger.

"The Dagger of Time…? How…?" he murmured before looking up to see the Dahaka suddenly upon him, its fist raised to attack.

Instinct took over, and the Prince's arm flew up to plunge the Dagger into the beast's abdomen. The Dahaka immediately stopped; its body trembled slightly as sand began to erupt from its body and flow into the blade of the Dagger.

The Prince grabbed his right wrist to try and steady himself as the powerful conversion shook his entire body. "Die!" he cried before thrusting the Dagger deeper, causing more sand to leave the Dahaka's body.

The Dagger began to crack as it consumed all of the Sands from the present. Fearful, the Prince removed it as a huge quake forced him back.

The Dahaka staggered, its power drained. "Yes, I will finish this," Kamal stated as he stepped before the beast, striking it down in one slash with the Water Sword. The Dahaka fell to the floor, its body fading away.

The Prince, using his knee, got on his feet nodding. "Thank you… Kamal…" Kamal smirked. "No, _thank you_, for now I no longer need the girl; the Dagger of Time for this timeline will serve her purpose."

"W-What?" the Prince stuttered before Kamal kicked him to the floor, catching the Dagger in his hand.

"Within this dagger holds the greatest power of the world! The power of time, or, in a sense, the power of life! Once I gain control of this power, I will be complete, no longer a shadow!"

He held the Dagger, the tip of its blade pointing at his stomach. "I am immortal!" he yelled before driving the Dagger into his body. A massive shockwave knocked everyone back as the Sands surrounded and flowed into his body.

"Ah, yes! Yes! It is working, perfectly!" His pale skin gained a light, golden hue, and his eyes glowed brightly.

"I-Impossible! His body couldn't possible contain _all _of the Sands!" Kaileena thought aloud as Kamal began to shake wildly, the dagger clattering to the floor.

He shouted in some mixture of emotions as an explosion of sand erupted from his body, coursing over his arms, legs, and torso.

"No… What… happened?"

"It's simple, Kamal; your body is not fit to contain the Sands of Time."

Everyone looked up to see Saeedeh hover down in front of Kamal; a small smile was plastered on her face. "You, child! This is your doing; you made this happen!" he cried as his body surged in agony. Saeedeh giggled. "Now, why would I _ever_ do that, Kamal? We are both hollow shells; time is trying to rid itself of us, but I will not allow that. You see, the Sands provide you with life, and _that_ is the solution to my plan to reform time."

She turned to everyone else. "Life… is what time needs! If I can give time life with the Sands, past and present will be discarded, and only future will remain! Once this shell of mine is filled with the Sands, I will no longer be a ghost!"

She glanced at Kamal. "Unfortunately, Kamal, you were inevitably a part of 'a child's dream'. You have done your part, so allow me to relieve you of the life you so cherish."

She held her arms out, and his body began to burn. Kamal cried in agony as the golden fire cremated his body, the Sands forming into a mass. "You… child!" Kamal yelled as the flames died out, leaving only the formless shape of the Sands.

"Do not worry, I can control them; I do not need the medallion as Kamal did." The Sands started flowing into her body smoothly.

"What is she doing?" the Prince asked weakly. Massoud stroked his chin. "She's taking in the Sands, because a future Kamal had succeeded in extracting the Sands from her body, but how will this provide her with 'life'?"

"The Sands serve as our life force," Kaileena answered. "What do you mean?" Farah inquired as she neared her.

"If the Sands are drained from our body, we die; it is reversed if we are killed, which releases the Sands. Kamal knew what he was doing, and had Massoud give him the medallion, which he would use to capture the Sands with before drawing them into his body. But it was a foolish plan, and Saeedeh is going to absorb the Sands, returning her to life."

The Prince shook his head. "So then what do we do? If she has the Sands she'll be too powerful for us to stop. Besides, we could use the Sands to return to the present now that Kamal is gone."

"What do you mean? Kill her? You cannot kill her; she's only a child!" Kaileena snapped back while standing before him.

"You heard her! She's going to reform time; how do we know what that could be? It might ruin my chance to restore and save Babylon!"

"Perhaps, but she does don't deserve death twice!"

Saeedeh giggled once more before walking to the center of the room. "I see… So you want to kill me? However, why should I die when you are the one who should be held responsible!"

The Prince ran in front of her. "What are you talking about? I am not going to allow you to crush my only chance at saving my home!"

Saeedeh laughed, but it was an empty, hollow laugh. "Home? I am the one who wishes to save my home! You only want to save your life, and that caused Kamal to go and murder my mother before killing me for the Sands! It was all your fault! Now, the past has been altered because of your actions! My counterpart and her mother did not die, like we did; is that fair?"

She sighed and shook her head. "No, it is not, but it won't matter. I will reform time, so everyone can have a second chance; everyone except for you!"

She scowled. "I have already absorbed the Sands of Time; your plan to defeat Kamal and save your timeline has failed; it is my obligation to mend your mistake." She walked right past him and to Kaileena.

"Now then, Kaileena, have you decided on what you are going to do? If you come with me, I will show you your true destiny, so please, come. We can create a true peace, and none of this will have ever happened."

Kaileena backed away slightly, glancing at the others. "I-I…"

"No, you are wrong," the Prince stated, directing it to Saeedeh. "In the beginning, I wanted to sop Kamal, but when I came here to the past, various thoughts entered my mind about saving Babylon; I could not just push them aside, but I see now that that is impossible."

He spun around and readied the Cobra Sword. "I can understand your feelings, but I will not allow you to go through with this! This madness stops here!"

Saeedeh laughed and turned to face him. "You cannot understand my feelings, you fool. Can you not understand this is better for humanity? I can create a time without the past. One, perfect timeline for everyone to live in, in peace."

The Prince shook his head. "No." He stabbed at Saeedeh, but his blade never reached her. Kaileena had stepped before the attack and the sword had pierced her stomach.

Massoud, Farah, and even Saeedeh stared on as the Prince loosened his grip on the Cobra Sword.

Kaileena frowned slightly, blood seeping out of the wound. "She's only a child… Children deserve a better world, and… that was a world I never… experienced…"

She cupped the wound with her hands. "Please, Prince, make sure she experiences it…" Kaileena stated before falling to the floor, blood continuing to spread.

"K-Kaileena…? Why is it…?"

Saeedeh was speechless; she frowned. "Do you see the error in your ways? She did not deserve death, and all because you are too ignorant!" The girl smiled slightly after a moment as the Prince fell to his knees, dropping the sword.

"Her sacrifice… was not in vain. If Kaileena cannot ascend, then perhaps my counterpart will… Yes, she is the only one left with the unique energy of the Empress of Time. This was why this event occurred differently, so that I could have another chance!"

She approached the Prince. "If you still wish to stop me, use the Water Sword…"

She then disappeared in a disperse of sand as the past Prince ran into the room.

(Yeah, I know, the death of Kaileena was played out poorly… sigh…)


	16. Facing Defeat

(Well, it seems by killing off two of the main characters I've saddened some of you, but fear not, for I know what I'm doing. Now I guess I'll respond to each of your reviews.)

_Lady Discord: I can't really tell you anything without spoiling the story, so you'll just have to wait and read; that's okay with you, right? On a side note, though, the Dahaka's gone. Yeah, and Kaileena's really dead, you know, like the 'not breathing' death, yeah. And no, once I finish this story I'll probably start production on a Warrior Within parody, followed by a Sands of Time one, so I'm not done with writing PoP fics._

_fallen angel overlord: Sorry about killing her, but again, I can't tell you anything without spoiling most of the story. I don't even know how to pronounce Saeedeh's name, so don't feel too bad. If she reminds you of Samara or that Japanese woman whose name I fail to recall than sorry, but at least I didn't make all her hair fall in front of her face._

_JRV(Jay Are Vee): You don't control me, you damn monster!_

One Last Chance:

Chapter Sixteen

The Prince remained on his knees, arms outstretched, hands supporting him from falling completely. The Cobra Sword lay a few feet away from him, its blade painted with blood.

Arad had watched the entire event, and he was extremely confused. His eyes caught sight of the Dagger on the floor beside the woman's deceased body. He began to reach for it when his younger brother ran into the room.

"A-Arad! Thank the heavens!" the past Prince exclaimed while running up to his brother. "Brother? Wa-,"

"I'm glad you are safe!"

Arad could barely speak as his younger sibling embraced him in a hug. Massoud fidgeted and approached the present Prince, kneeling down on one leg. "Hey, are you all right?"

"No…" he muttered, looking up into Massoud's eyes. "I… I killed her again, just like at the Island of Time. And now, there is no way to save my father or Babylon. Kamal did his share of damage to both of these timelines, but in reality, I doomed us all…"

Massoud sighed and placed his hands on the Prince's shoulders, shaking him slightly. "What are you doing? Giving up? This is not the time to surrender! The past is gone! We cannot save Babylon, or Kaileena, but there is still hope. Lives are still in danger!"

The Prince chuckled quietly, shaking his head. "I am no her, Massoud, none of us are. You betrayed us, I was too weak… Can you not see? It's over; there is nothing more that we can do!"

Massoud winced and stood after a few moments. "Whatever happened to you? When we were children, I was a commoner, and you were royalty, yet I somehow always snuck past the guards so that we could play. Or was it because the guards knew, and they felt it would be the right thing to do to allow me access?" He shook his head. "I suppose it is over…"

He turned and began to walk towards the entrance, but Farah stopped him. "Where are you off to?"

"Anywhere," he replied, opening the door and exiting, but Farah followed after him.

"Wait, please!" she called out to him as he began to leave. The sun had risen high into the sky, its rays scorching the city.

"What is it?" he asked, turning to face her. Farah approached him and sighed. "I'm afraid… I have not been as truthful as I should've been."

"What do you mean?"

"When you freed me from the temporary dungeons in Babylon, did it not seem strange to you that I was the only one imprisoned there?"

"Well, it was peculiar…"

"Yes, and it would be illogical if I was not moved to a permanent cell in my imprisonment."

Massoud backed away slightly. "You're saying… you were not a prisoner there, are you not?"

Farah sighed again. "Correct. Seven years ago, the Persian army attacked my father's empire. Many of the maidens and animals were captured and taken prisoner, and I was one of them."

"Of course…"

"Well," Farah continued, "after a few months, one of the king's sons and I fell in love; his name was Arad."

Massoud flinched. "Arad? The same man still inside the palace?"

"Yes, but it was his 'alternate', as you know. We married, and lived peacefully in the palace; this caused a peace between my father's army and Persia, after I stated I was the Maharajah's daughter."

Massoud rubbed his eyes. "That is, until Babylon was attacked, correct?"

"Yes; Arad, and most of the people within the palace were slain, but I ran, hiding within the dungeon."

"And just by simple coincidence he, Kaileena, and I were there," he confirmed, however, the Prince's story of the Sands of Time still lingered in the back of his head.

She nodded. "I was going to tell you all, but it did not feel… right…" Massoud closed his eyes. "I will not inform our friend of this if you do not want to."

"Thank you…" Farah answered.

The Prince rose to his feet slowly, his eyes scanning the room. He was slightly disorientated when Arad approached him, however.

"Sir, I believe you should have this," he stated, holding the Dagger of Time out to the Prince, who only glanced at it. "Arad…" he thought.

"Why?" he asked sternly, looking Arad straight in the eye. "Well, I have no more need of it, and it seems you will need it far more than I ever will."

The past Prince clutched his wound slightly, the pain returned gradually as the present Prince took the Dagger out of his hand; his mind suddenly went back to that day in Azad more than seven years ago….

He shook it off and placed the Dagger within the small sheath strapped to the side of his left leg. He then turned and began walking towards the Cobra Sword, picking it up slowly. "Both of these swords have tasted blood… their thirst will never be quenched…" he muttered before sheathing it away.

The Prince proceeded to take the Water Sword as well. He reached for the Cobra Sword with his free left hand and held both so that they faced each other.

"What are you going to do?" Arad questioned while walking up to his alternate brother. "When they come back in, do not allow them to follow me," the Prince ordered before swiping the swords, their blades connecting. He grasped the handles tightly and completed the slash, creating another rift in the air.

Without another word, he leaped through the portal.

"Mommy… where are you…?" the younger Saeedeh mumbled, tears forming in her eyes. She sat on a circular platform of some sort; the temperature was extremely low in the dark chamber, causing the girl to embrace herself.

"Mommy is within you and me," another, somewhat childish voice spoke out. "We only need to release her…"

The younger Saeedeh looked around, her eyes filled with water. "No…I want Mommy!" she exclaimed while beginning to cry.

"No tears…"

The girl slowed her breathing and tried to stop, but the liquid continued to seep out. "Mommy will be with us soon… Very soon…" the voice stated as another, older girl walked up beside Saeedeh.

"Yes, very soon…"

(That was a short chapter… damn…)


	17. Doubts

(Wooh! It's been quite awhile since the deletion, but I now bring you the seventeenth chapter to the story! Enjoy!)

_About Saeedeh: I'm sure most of you think Saeedeh acted very out of character in the last few chapters. While I haven't emphasized on that, all that much, but her plan to create one, perfect timeline for her and her mother is almost complete. When both the Alternate Kaileena and the Past Saeedeh survived, however, the spirit became angry, furious at the fact that her past self did not experience the losses she had; it was unfair._

One Last Chance:

Chapter Seventeen

Farah had been the first to re- enter the palace, quietly. She had changed much in the seven years since she was first entangled with the Sands of Time, and it showed.

She had let her hair grow, to the base of her neck. Her eyes had narrowed slightly, and the loose bang which would hover before her eyes had been combed back, no longer acting as such a nuisance.

Massoud, however, had taken a moment outside to contemplate on the events that had transpired. He had sat against the wall to the left of the entrance doors, lowering his head to look down at the ground.

"How could I… let myself be used in such a way… Could the powers of Time really be able to mend the scars of the past, entirely? Ladan, why did it have to turn out this way…?"

* * *

A beautiful, healthy baby boy had been born to a wealthy Persian family in the suburbs of Babylon. The family had owned a wondrous estate, but tragedy comes when least expected. One fateful night, a horrific fire occurred and burned down the estate, killing the boy's father and mother. The flames had spread throughout most of that part of the capital, and the boy would have met the same fate, had he not been saved by a man.

This man had managed to save a one year- old girl as well, and he took them both to his small home in the slums of Babylon. This man, while in poverty, was a merchant who, even in difficult times, tried his best to raise the two children as if they were his own.

He named the boy, Massoud, and the girl, Ladan, which had been the names of his own sister and brother.

Massoud and Ladan would spend most of their time together, playing and helping the man with things. One day, though, Massoud got lost. He was, at the time, only six, and ventured off too far into the city. He somehow ended up in the gardens of the royal palace, and there stumbled upon the youngest son of King Sharaman.

The two spoke for awhile, and quickly became friends, and after the Prince was called in, Massoud snuck out and eventually found his way back home, even though he was scolded.

Massoud regularly found his way back into the gardens, spending time with his friend. The boy was happy, content with his life, until his adoptive father became seriously ill…

The man was bedridden for four years, and Massoud and Ladan were forced to search for work, despite their young age. Unfortunately, the man died, but the two somehow managed to survive in their small, ragged home, but that changed as well.

One day, when Ladan had went off to obtain some food, Massoud was busy working, and he had patiently awaited his adoptive sister long until after nightfall, she never returned.

For two days she never came back, and Massoud could only think of the worst. He never saw or met Ladan again, even by the time he was fifteen and requested for a job as a servant at the royal palace.

* * *

Massoud sighed and leaned his head back against the stone wall. "If only I had gone with her… We could have both survived and worked at the palace, looking out for each other…"

He was suddenly brought from his thoughts by the shuffling of a person nearby.

"S-Sir…? Oh, thank goodness you are still alive!" the past, alternate Kaileena exclaimed. Massoud stood up, turning to see the woman running towards him. He was actually startled, for once you have witnessed a person dying, it is extremely peculiar to see them alive once more.

"What is the matter?" he inquired as she grasped his arms. "Please… We must search for my daughter, Saeedeh, she… disappeared!"

"Disappeared…? How?" Massoud questioned as Kaileena backed away and regained her composure. As we were running from the palace, she tumbled, and I lost grip of her hand. She had fallen, and then there had been a sudden pain in the back of my head. When I looked back, she was gone, nowhere!"

Massoud glanced around and nodded. "I see… Well, then you'd best come with me so we can explain what happened."

* * *

"He… went alone?" Farah asked again as Arad nodded. Massoud and Kaileena were standing nearby, barely entering as Farah had spoken.

"I handed him the Dagger, and he used both of those swords to create what seemed like a 'tear'. He then jumped through it, and a few minutes later you all walked in."

"I do not believe it… What was he thinking?" Massoud thought aloud before walking up to the present Kaileena's body. "That fool! Who knows where he might've gone too!"

The past Kaileena had silently eyed her alternate's body as the past Prince stepped up, still clutching the cut. "I know this may be late, but what _is_ going on here? That demon, that girl, those swords…?"

Massoud nodded. "Yes, well, just, please, listen. It is a difficult story to comprehend, but listen, listen well…"

"So, then, my daughter is responsible for most of these events?" Kaileena asked, her voice cracking slightly.

"Unfortunately, yes, and we must find a way to stop her, or at least try to understand what she is hoping to accomplish."

Arad cleared his throat. "If this is all true, what other way is there to follow my brother?"

Massoud shook his head. "I'm not entirely sure. From what I can see, Farah's amulet is gone and the Sands are no longer present in this timeline, so I can think of no other option left."

Kaileena sighed. "Perhaps, but even if you used the Sands of Time it would not help… which is why I believe this will." She then reached behind her neck and unhooked a golden necklace, removing it and dangling it in the air.

"When I was a child, my adoptive father gave me this necklace as a gift. He was very ill when he handed it to me, and my brother was sick as well. Neither of them survived, however…" She stopped speaking and smiled. "No, that is not important. My father told me the gem was told to have powers over time itself, but even though it was merely a legend, it may be your last chance."

She approached Massoud and placed the gem around his neck before backing away. "I may not know the true meaning behind this, yet, it is, partially, my responsibility, so I'd like to assist in any way I can."

Massoud stared at her for a moment before nodding. "Thank you… but how are we supposed to know any of the legends around it are true?"

"This way," answered Farah as she held an identical necklace in her hand. "W-Where did you get that?" Massoud demanded as she placed it in his hand.

"The Kaileena from our time and place still had the necklace, so I suppose more than one similarity is present within these alternate realities."

Arad thought for a moment. "If that is the case, than perhaps both of the gems work like the blades?"

Massoud nodded and held the separate jewel close to the one hanging from his neck. He then forced both to touch. Their ruby colored surfaces clattered as the palace began to tremble.

"W-What is this?"

"It must have triggered something!"

The two objects remained touching and broke from Massoud's hand and neck, floating in the air in the spot where the Cobra Sword and Water Sword had met.

"They are reacting because of the swords! It is true, they are similar…"

Both shattered, revealing an endless, crimson hole in the air. "They _must_ be leading to my brother!" Arad cried out as Farah approached it. "How do we know it is safe? This could be anything…"

"Yet it is the only thing we have left," stated Massoud before walking up in front of the hole. "Are any of you coming with us? Arad?"

The man shook his head. "No, I must stay here and attempt to mend as much of the damage as I can. This, is in your hands."

Massoud nodded as Farah glanced at each of them, frowning while beginning to enter the hole. Within moments, she was gone, and Massoud could only examine the manifestation.

"This is it, then… Ladan, I am sorry…" He then turned back to the others, looking at Kaileena for a moment before walking into the light.

(sigh My returning chapter is a crappy chapter…)


End file.
